


I See

by LilBeanMel



Category: FFXV - Fandom, Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Bromance, Crack, Epic Bromance, Gen, Glasses, Humor, King Noctis Lucis Caelum, Noctis Lucis Caelum Lives, Noctis Wears Glasses, Older Chocobros (Final Fantasy XV), Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-22
Updated: 2020-07-22
Packaged: 2021-03-05 02:53:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,895
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25437238
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LilBeanMel/pseuds/LilBeanMel
Summary: King Noctis who lived after saving the world from the blight now rules his kingdom with an iron fist and a golden heart. He is the strongest king, and the most powerful soldier. His leg being his only weakness — except for his receding eyesight. Needless to say, Prompto, Gladiolus, and Ignis have a wonderful time making fun of him.
Relationships: Gladiolus & Ignis & Noctis & Prompto
Comments: 2
Kudos: 38





	I See

**Author's Note:**

> A conversation with a friend led to this beautiful mess. Enjoy.

For an all-powerful King, Noctis sure as hell felt beyond shitty. His friends laughing quietly at his misery didn't help him in the slightest. 

He should've seen this coming. It's not like it started in the morning, he had been seeing signs since the start of the week. Perhaps spending so much time within the Citadel walls dulled his perceptiveness. He fought the urge to ruffle his hair as he usually did when stressed. Maybe he should volunteer and take down some of the powerful beasts terrorizing the crop fields and chocobo ranches the Hunters were having trouble with to sharpen his senses. Gladio's training isn't cutting it anymore, and frankly, he didn't even want to glance in the man's direction. 

His hand absentmindedly went to perch his glasses further up his nose, only to be met with the oily surface of his skin. Which reminded him once again of his predicament.

\------

Monday, one week prior.

"I believe that takes care of things," The King finished, his advisor collecting the documents scattered about his desk as he and his guest stood with relief after being confined to their chairs for a good portion of the day.

The older woman's painted lips stretched into a smile, bowing in gratitude. "It certainly does. Thank you for your time, Your Majesty,"

He raised a hand, beckoning her to raise her head and returned her smile. "Of course, please enjoy your stay in Insomnia, Mrs. Gainsborough." He watched his childhood friend come around the desk to open the heavy doors to his office, placing a folder in the woman's hands.

"Oh, the gardens here are simply beautiful! I worry I may be late to next Monday's meeting!" She added playfully, bowing once again despite his wishes and followed Ignis through the doors.

Noctis let the smile slowly drop from his face, letting out a long sigh as he relaxed shoulders. He stripped himself of his kingly raiment, stomping his leg in an attempt to regain feeling in the ligament as he busied his hands with popping the top button of his shirt and rolling up the sleeves. He plopped back down behind his desk, completely sprawled out. 

The sun had long since set, and his body began to demand rest after the long day of meetings, paperwork, and more meetings.

Not a moment after he shut his eyes, the doors spread open again. 

"That's not a posture befitting of a King, Your Majesty."

Noctis rolled his eyes from underneath his eyelids, making no attempt to move. "My posture rivals yours, I promise you." The familiar footsteps of his friend stopped right beside him, and Noctis cracked a single eye open to see Ignis peering down at him from behind his tinted glasses. 

"Oh, it certainly rivals it, that's for certain." Ignis kicked the foot that was still upright, causing Noctis to sink further into the seat, the leather squeaking from the movement. Noctis let out an exaggerated groan as he pulled himself back up into a proper sitting position, Ignis's head following his movements.

"Stop watching me like that, it's creepy," Noctis huffed.

"It is not creepy, it is polite to those I am speaking to," Ignis countered. Noctis grumbled in response, sliding off the last thing he needed to relax. His glasses clinked against the desk as he set them down and Ignis smirked. "I suppose it's a good thing that I am the one who is blind and not you—oh wait..."

Noctis groaned, much to Ignis's satisfaction. He stood in one fluid motion, pocketing his glasses which Ignis had told him many times, was a stupid thing to do. 

"Give it a rest already, will you? I stopped poking fun at you in a month at least." The heavy doors nearly slammed shut had it not been for Ignis catching it with a precise gloved hand.

"I will 'give it a rest' when I've run out of ways to point out your handicap. My vocabulary is far more extensive than yours, by the way, so do expect this to run on for quite a while."

Noctis grimaced, pausing his walk down the hall and stuck his foot in his advisor's path. Ignis simply side-stepped the limb, his head held forward, walking with confident strides through the halls he memorized to the very detail.

The young king scrunched his nose, watching as his friend overtook him and turned a corner that lead to the kitchens.

At least he could look forward to eating with his other two friends.

"Woah! The King of Lucis seen without his glasses within the Citadel walls for the first time since his princely years!? We never saw it coming!" 

Or not.

That was the first thing he had heard upon entering the dining room, and he made an immediate U-turn before Prompto could finish his tabloid headline. A large hand clamped on his shoulder, effectively halting him in his tracks. He cranked his head to the side, met with the amber eyes of his Shield.

"Now come on Highness, you can't just skip out on dinner. The cooks even prepared some carrots for your eyes! They're your favorite after all, aren't they?"

Noctis was seriously considering instigating a spontaneous 'training' session right then and there.

Unfortunately, he was forced into a chair before he could expand on the thought.

As Prompto began chattering about his day while waiting for the staff to finish placing their meals in front of them, the door cracked ajar, opening slowly. Noctis's eyes lit up when he saw who emerged, trotting to him with a wagging tail and a single bark of greeting.

"Umbra!" The canine gave him a grin, nudging his master's leg with his snout as if to say, "I'm home!"

Prompto stole one of Noctis's plates of food and placed it on the floor for Umbra to feast upon, the dog devouring the meal almost instantly. The blonde cooed, scratching behind the dog's ears as he ate. Noctis ran one hand down the length of his silky fur and took the container from his harness.

After restoring light to Eos and reconstruction began on Insomnia, Umbra was promoted from messenger dog between lovers, to messenger for the King. Noctis entrusted crucial contracts and documents to his loyal canine companion to deliver, and so far, he's looking like Lucis's employee of the year.

"So what's New Nifelheim's response?" Gladio asked through a mouthfull of food. Noctis hummed, scanning over the contents of the letter with squinted eyes.

"They agreed to the new trade routes. Construction will begin as suggested," Gladiolus leaned over the table to snatch the paper from his charge's hands, giving it a once over before voicing his confirmation.

"Hey, what's your deal?" 

Gladiolus directed a smirk at his annoyed glare. "Just making sure you read it correctly." Prompto burst into laughter, nearly choking on his food.

Ignis snorted, his fist shooting up to cover his mouth as he cleared his throat. "Excuse me, I will begin preparations at once."

Noctis set down his fork harshly, the ding from metal and glass clashing rang in his ears as loudly as his friends' laughter. His hand went to pet Umbra's head which was resting on his lap, hoping for more scraps. 

"At least you're on my side..." He muttered, his voice being drowned out by his friends. Umbra barked, as if offering his support to his master in these trying times.

\-------

Tuesday, six days prior.

Noctis was still groggy from sleep when he sat in his office, beginning to tackle the stack of paperwork waiting for his approval. The cloudy weather not helping him in the slightest. He blinked his eyes hard to rid himself of the sleep that still clouded his vision. When he still found himself seeing double smeared letters, he realized the absence of his spectacles. 

"This is such a pain..." He whined to himself, opening the top drawer where he stored them after work. "Huh?" To his confusion, they were missing. He wracked his brain for where they could possibly be, annoyance making itself present. Then he remembered its place in his pocket during last night's dinner. Figuring he must have left them on the table, he lifted himself from his chair and sauntered over to his glasses' last known location.

"Oh, good morning Your Majesty! Breakfast won't be ready for another hour, would you like me to prepare a snack for you?" One of the cooks asked him as he wiped the table.

"No, that's alright," Noctis shook his head, "I came to ask if you've seen a pair of glasses that I left last night," The cook paused for a moment in thought before shaking his head in denial. Noctis huffed through his nose and bid him farewell, returning to his office.

Oh well, He thought, I can make do without them.

Two hours later, Noctis realized that he in fact, cannot make do without them. Ignis paused his note taking, looking up at the king when he sensed his distraught. "Is something the matter, Noct?" 

Noctis swallowed his pride, confessing his problem to Ignis. "I... lost my glasses..." He grumbled. 

"I see,"

A beat of silence passed.

Two. 

Three.

Ignis resumed his typing. The smart phone's virtual assistant voicing the letters his thumbs hit, occasionally pressing the backspace key to correct himself. Noctis's eyebrow twitched. "Can you get them for me?" 

With a curve to his lips, Ignis replied, "It's mighty foolish to ask a blind man to search for such a small object within these castle walls, don't you think?"

Noctis scoffed. Both of them knew that Ignis had the ability to find anything despite his blindness. He was the mom that you call for help after searching for an item for hours, only for them to locate it in a second in that obvious spot you just somehow managed to miss.

"I probably left them in my pants pocket. There should still be time before the maids come to collect the laundry." 

"You put them in your pockets again? You'll break them soon enough." Ignis tsked. "Either way, why can't you get it yourself? It's not like you can get any more work done without them." 

"Your legs are longer. You'll get there faster."

A scarred brow lifted, pulling on the sensitive skin around his eyes. "Well this is certainly surprising. Are you admitting your shortcomings? Ah, that reminds me of that one particular song that you used to sing all of the time in your teen years. How did it go again?"

Noctis lunged across his desk, uncaring for the folders he knocked over in his attempt to clamp a hand over Ignis's mouth. Yet the man caught his hand with a precision that made Noctis wonder for a moment if his friend suddenly regained his sight.

"Oh, I recall now." Ignis began to rap in a monotone voice that would make anyone listening cringe. His accent making it sound like he was reading off of a textbook rather than rapping along to a very popular song some years ago.

"I'm five foot something and I'm royalty. Short king mama ayy. Ain't no must be this tall to-" It was too much for the royal to bear. He warped forward, phasing through both the grip on his wrist and the desk acting as a barrier to keep him from mangling his best friend.

Noctis had fought the hardest battle in his lifetime— harder than his showdown with Ardyn—with his impulse to dropkick his smug tactician. Breathe, Noct. You are a peaceful King. Executions are a thing of the past. Surely a roundhouse kick won't hurt hi- No, bad Noct. Behave.

He instead opted to warp Ignis out of his own chair and replaced him. Grinning in victory when he saw the look of discomfort and nausea that fell on his face as Ignis tried getting over the disorientation that came from being warped.

He adapted quickly though, as he always did. "Ah, there's the temper tantrum I'm used to."

Noctis's victorious grin fell, his foot rapping against the marble at a faster pace. "Ignis, please."

His advisor bowed, his smirk making a reappearance, which irked the King even more. The "Yes, Your Majesty" he responded with trailed off into a snicker that the man didn't bother to restrain. Noctis swore that after the big meeting, the first thing he'll do is order the staff to rearrange every piece of furniture in the damn Citadel. 

"I hope Ignis looks forward to stubbing his toes for the next month," his evil cackles resounded in the large room. The two guards stationed in the hall eyed each other with concern for the King.

\-------

Wednesday, five days prior.

Prompto squealed in glee as he wrestled with Umbra in the gardens of the Citadel. At least it started out as one. Their wrestling match was short-lived, and soon turned into an all out cuddle fest. The gunman's grunts and playful yelps quickly turned into boisterous laughter as he fought in vain to block the onslaught of slobbery licks Umbra was so keen on giving.

Noctis watched on the sidelines with amusement. The day entailed less work than usual, so he decided to start later in the evening. He had spent so many days cooped up in his office, being released from the confinements of his duty long past dark. And he figured that he was entitled to enjoy the sunlight he fought tooth and nail to restore too.

Prompto was way too excited to have some "Bro Time" with his best friend and waltzed up to Noctis first thing in the morning, declaring that they go on a double date. A confused Noctis agreed, only to find out that one of the couples was Prompto and Umbra. The other being Noctis and his loneliness.

Noctis shook his head, filtering the loud laughter and barking from his head and instead wondered to the pond, watching the fish swim by with a dopey grin.

Something wasn't right, he thought after a few moments. He heaved a deep sigh, muttering words of complaint under his breath as he reached into the depths of his infinite pockets to retrieve his glasses. 

Only they weren't there.

Oh, how Ignis would berate him with words if he found out.

Noctis raised a hand to his mouth, Umbra immediately running to his whistle.

"Oh, come on! We were having so much fun!" Prompto whined, jumping to his feet.

"Stop whining. You can have my dog back in a second." He snapped back. "Go get my glasses, boy." Umbra barked once, scurrying off into the building to carry out his task.

His gaze fell back to a pouting Prompto. When the pout didn't leave him by the time Noctis stood before him, he kicked him. The gunman's face burrowed into the dirt, causing him to roll over to his back and spit out a few blades of grass.

They stared each other down for a moment before erupting into a fit of laughter.

"You made your dog go fetch your glasses?" Prompto teased after he caught his breath, "Why, can't find 'em on your own? Poor thing," 

Noctis rolled his eyes, "I'm not that blind." He moved to sit, only for his feet to be swiped out from under him, his face hitting the ground and his mouth filling with grass.

"Ahahaha! Not blind my butt! You totally didn't see that coming!"

Noctis groaned, flipping himself and spitting. "Totally walked into that one... Literally..." 

Prompto's arms crossed to clutch his stomach as he laughed. "I'm sorry man, there was no way I could let such a golden opportunity slip. You good?"

Noctis threw an arm to shield his eyes, "My pride sure isn't."

Prompto slapped a hand on his friend's belly, "Aw, come on! Maybe that fall fixed your eyes or something! Quickly! How many fingers am I holding up?" He chirped.

The King lifted his arm slightly to peek through the gap, glaring at the blonde. Prompto merely grinned back at him with a peace sign. Noctis let his arm fall beside him in defeat. "I have to schedule a press conference and announce the first assassination attempt on the King. By his former best friend, no less."

Prompto threw himself back on his arms, "Like you can even manage to write up the invitations without your precious specs," He hovered over Noctis with a smug grin. "Besides, I saved your ass more times than I can count on my fingers! No one will believe this dashing gentleman would ever do something so barbaric."

"The King's word is absolute, don't you know? Especially the King of Kings that quite literally saved the world." He retorted.

"Not if I leak your eye exam results. With that vision, everyone will doubt what you saw." Prompto rolled out of the way when Noctis lunged at him, barely dodging a fist.

"Oh boy! Training session with Noct! What a throwback!" He cheered, bouncing on the heels of his feet and rolling his shoulders as Noctis jumped to his feet. 

Gladiolus and Ignis walked together, searching for their charge who should have come to the office over an hour ago. Even the text message they sent him was unread. Turning a corner and entering the gardens, their ears were hit with Prompto's desperate screams. 

Gladio's face dropped in disappointment, feeling like a fool for being concerned for Noctis when this is what he was doing. Yet he couldn't fight the twinge of amusement that surfaced.

Prompto slammed his fist to the ground frantically in surrender with his free arm, his other arm trapped between Noctis's thighs as his captor pulled on the limb. Ignis sighed.

\-------

Thursday, four days prior.

It was rare to see the four gathered together outside of the Citadel these days, but a trip to Hammerhead meant that Ignis tagged along by default as the King's advisor. Gladiolus being the ever-loyal Shield he was, also tagged along, and Prompto felt left out so he neglected his hunter duties to hang out with "The Chocobros". Of course, that changed as soon as Cindy entered his sights.

Gotta admire the man's tenacity.

Hammerhead was no longer a pitstop on the side of the road with a single garage and diner. It was flourishing into a full-fledged town now that the daemons and beasts were no longer a threat. And with construction and new territory came paperwork. 

Lots of paperwork. Which explained Noctis's passed out form.

"Dad... How the hell did you do it?" Noctis moaned into his pillow and swore he saw a vison of Regis answer him. By relying on others. A king does not rule on his own. Allow your friends to be your eyes and ears. Especially your eyes, son.

Noctis shot out of bed, growling in frustration. "You too!?" Cue the familiar ghostly laughter of his father in the distance.

\-------

Friday, three days prior.

He twirled out the way of the great sword at the last second, dirt flying in all directions from where the weapon collided with the ground where he formerly stood.

Just as soon as the weapon halted, it vanished, and instead a lance was thrust in his direction. Noctis averted his head, clicking his tongue when the blade grazed his cheek. He summoned a lance of his own, throwing the opposing weapon off its course. It hit the ground in a flurry of blue sparks.

Noctis replaced the lance in his hands with his engine blade, preparing to strike. "Time." He had to warp himself back when his opponent spoke to avoid attacking him while unarmed.

"Would you stop calling off the match when I'm about to win already?" He snapped, relaxing the hand that gripped his blade and letting the weapon vanish in a flash of light.

Gladiolus hummed, already making his way to the benches. "Fifty wins and fifty losses, I'm not about to up the loss number." The bench creaked under his weight while he took a long chug of water.

Noctis sat beside him and said, "Shouldn't you be proud of me being better than you?" 

"You're not better than me," Gladio retorted, "It's all your magic humbo jumbo that makes you so fast." Noctis nearly spat out his water from the obscene statement.

"You're that petty to claim that I'm cheating?" 

Gladio shrugged, "You're right. I should be giving you a handicap." Noctis nearly asked him what for until it dawned on him. He swiped a hand at his Shield who took the hit while laughing.

"I'm getting sick and tired of you guys' blind jokes."

"Hey, you're the one who said it, not me."

Noctis's eyes flashed red. "I will summon Titan and have him step on you."

Gladio waved a dismissive hand. "Eh, beat him once, I can do it again."

"Woah, hang on, I was the one who beat him!"

"Did you really? Sorry, I couldn't see."

Noctis was ready to start round two of training.

Instead, Gladiolus tossed a towel at his face. It clung to him like the rest of the clothes on his body and when he pried it off, he saw the splotch of blood that came from his cheek.

He summoned a potion from his pockets and crushed it in his hand, the curative immediately closing up and healing any wounds he sustained.

"You used a potion for a little scratch? Wuss." Came the remark from beside him.

Noctis scoffed, wiping at his face. "Listen, showing off your thousand scars doesn't make you any manlier. I've got one from the gaping hole in my chest when I was stabbed by my Dad's ghost and you don't see me parading around with my shirt off."

Gladio snorted, patting Noctis's back roughly, causing him to jolt forward. "That's cause your lanky ass can't put on any muscle." With that, he stood to take his leave.

"I have muscle!" Noctis called back, "I parried Titan's fist with my bare hands!" 

"If I didn't see it, it didn't happen. Don't live by that or else you won't be able to believe anything at all, Your Highness."

Round two sounded awfully tempting right about now.

\-------

Saturday, two days prior.

How was it possible for him to have lost his glasses again? When he sent Umbra out to retrieve them three days ago, he came back with his spare pair. Losing something to the point he couldn't find it wasn't uncommon at all. But for Umbra to return empty handed? Something had to be amiss.

Maybe a hardcore fan of his snuck in somehow and stole them, he thought. He paused in his writing for a moment at the thought of it being one of the guards. 

A shiver ran down his spine.

A hand entered his vision, the owner snapping their fingers. "Hey, Prince Charming. Focus on your work." Noctis glared up at Gladio through his glasses, begrudgingly returning to his work.

Yet the thought still plagued him, so he voiced his theory. "You don't think I have a stalker, do you?"

Prompto sat up straight from his place on the window sill, quickly pausing his game. "Woah, where did that scary thought come from?" He asked. 

Before Noctis could answer, Gladio spoke. "Why? Were you threatened? Was someone following you?" His words were rushed in concern. If a stalker or attacker got past his watch and harmed the King, Gladiolus wouldn't be able to forgive himself.

Ignis already had his phone whipped out, ready to increase security and all but cause an uproar in the Citadel.

Noctis quickly waved away their worries, already seeing how their minds jumped to the worst possible conclusions. Seeing them so concerned almost made him feel stupid for his next words. 

"No, nothing like that happened! It's just, you know, some things of mine have gone missing recently, and I guess I might have let my imagination go a little wild." Even though it was their job to protect him, he learned long ago that their protectiveness was more than a duty. His heart warmed from the love he received from his friends.

Gladio exhaled roughly, sitting back in his chair in relief. Ignis pocketed his phone as well, glad that there was no cause for panic.

"Noct," Prompto called. "By things of yours going missing... You don't mean your glasses, do you?" Amusement coated his whole face and it was apparent in his voice.

Noctis froze, heat crawling up his neck and settling on his cheeks. "N-No...!" That didn't convince anyone. Gladio stared in exasperation, looking thoroughly done with Noctis.

"Are you a dumbass or something?" 

And there goes the heartwarming moment.

"Oh shut up! I don't know where the hell they are or how I lost it! You can't blame me for thinking it was stolen. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if you guys took it from me to play a joke!" He shot in defense.

Ignis crossed his arms, leaning forward in his chair. "Doing so would prove more detrimental than anything. By slowing your work, the kingdom suffers in turn. As do I, since I am the one responsible for your schedule." He added as an after thought.

Noctis raised an eyebrow and challenged that statement. "Oh really? Cause I remember you sitting back and watching while Prompto switched my lenses out and pretended like my vision got worse." Prompto barely restrained the bark of laughter that threatened to slip past his lips, clearly recalling his golden prank.

"I did not watch him do so. I'm very much blind, Noct." He waved a hand in front of his eyes for good measure.

Noctis's eyes nearly fell out of his skull from how hard he rolled them. "Yeah, whatever. So, what, if it's not you guys you think someone's taking my stuff?"

Gladiolus who was watching the whole exchange, finally spoke up. "Hate to break it to you, Highness, but no one wants a scruffy looking King that can barely see two feet in front of him that badly."

Prompto hummed in agreement, rubbing at his chin as he put in his two cents. "Sorry buddy, but I'm gonna have to agree with Gladio. That beard doesn't do you any justice."

Just as he said that, Noctis was scratching his beard in frustration. His hand quickly dropped back to his desk as he slammed the other down. "Hey! I look exactly like my father and everyone admired him and his beard!"

Noctis could barely stomach the memory of his younger years where he constantly overheard his classmates and passerbys openly lust over his own dad. He shook the thought away quickly in disgust.

"Yeah, well, His Majesty King Regis was..." Prompto started, unsure of how to continue. He was walking on egg shells right now if Noctis's glare was anything to go by.

"Your dad was hot stuff. You're not." Gladio finished for Prompto who nodded in approval along with Ignis. Even though the advisor had no idea what Noctis looked like as a grown man. 

Noctis threw his head back, his office chair nearly tipping over from the force. "Why are you three in my office again? You're keeping me from my work." He groaned, rubbing his eyes and cursing for having to remove his glasses to do so.

"We're all off duty and have nothing else to do and bothering you is the most entertaining way to spend our time!" Prompto cheered and thrust his arms into the air.

"I'm having all three of you thrown out of the castle. Bring in the guards." He shut his eyes while trying to get ahold of his impulses.

"As your loyal advisor, I advise against that."

His eye twitched as he dragged them back to Ignis. "You're abusing your power more than any King in the history of Lucis."

"That is actually false. You see, the 72nd Quee-"

"Get out!"

\-------

Sunday, one day prior.

Noctis slept peacefully sprawled out askew. His sheets were a tangled mess by his feet and Umbra curled beside him with his snout buried under his arm. He was roused from his peaceful slumber by the alarm on his phone playing the Kings Knight victory theme in a loop.

He groaned, shooting his hand out to stop the noise, peeking one eye open only to immediately shut it from the sudden intrusion of light.

He took a moment to adjust to the light in his room before turning on his phone to check the time. A sharp intake of breath led to him coughing the remaining sleepiness away. 

Umbra rose to his feet after being startled awake by the noise and pressed up against Noctis in comfort. Noctis cleared his throat one last time and gave Umbra a heavy pat on his head.

"Sorry boy, I don't have time to properly say good morning to you. Literally."

An important meeting started in half an hour and he somehow managed to sleep through all previous alarms. He thanked Shiva for allowing him to catch the last one. A chill ran through him.

Noctis all but threw himself out of bed, rushing into the shower. He can lie his way out of being late, but he'd rather die than show up smelling like drool. 

Nearly slipping on the way out and making a mental note to install a carpet in front of the bathroom, Noctis finished in record time, now scrambling through his closet for his clothes. 

Noctis was one leg into his dress pants when the bedroom door burst open revealing an irritated Ignis.

"It's not what it looks like!" He shouted before he could think. Ignis's face remained unamused, and he raised an eyebrow while gesturing to his face. "Uh, it's not what you think it looks like!"

A larger body entered the doorway. "Really? Cause it looks like you got caught with your pants down sleeping in." Gladio remarked with a smirk. The complete opposite to the impassive Ignis.

Noctis shuffled into his shoes and forced his arms through the sleeves of a shirt, tossing a jacket at his Shield's face. "Sorry, Iggy, don't know what happened today." He said as he squeezed through the two, rushing to button up his shirt.

Oh, the field day the staff would have if they bore witness to their shirtless King running down the halls.

Noctis froze mid-way of putting on his jacket. "What's wrong?" Ignis asked.

"Shit, I forgot a tie." Noctis reached for Ignis's collar and tugged on his tie. "Lend me yours Iggy," 

Ignis swatted his hands away, protecting his tie like it was his lifeline. "You will be fine without one so please do not make a mess out of me as well!"

"Do you know how bad that'll make me look!? You're an advisor, not the King, no one will think anything of you if you don't wear one but they will with me!"

Gladio leaned against the wall and watched the scene with great amusement. He made no move to break up the fight their bickering will soon turn into. 

Much to Gladio's disappointment, rushed steps and a series of barks stopped the fight before it could escalate. 

Noctis turned, his eyes shining with tears of joy as Umbra sprinted to him with a tie hanging loosely from his mouth. Noctis kneeled, engulfing the dog in a hug and vigorously giving him as many pets as he could. "Good boy, Umbra! You saved my ass!" Umbra gave a proud bark in response.

"Come on, kid," Gladio lifted Noctis and started pushing him down the hall. "You've got about eight minutes so it's time to haul ass."

Noctis reached to give one last pat to Umbra before moving to walk without being pushed. He swore to give him an obnoxious amount of treats later.

\-------

Monday, several hours prior.

Unbelievable. This was un-be-lie-va-ble. Noctis was on the verge of pulling his hair out. He even made a sweep of the room just to be sure Ardyn wasn't back and messing with his head because this was on another level of messed up.

"Don't you dare Prompto." He growled through his teeth. Prompto slowly lowered his camera and hid it behind his back with a sheepish grin. 

"Sorry, Noct. You just look so photo-worthy right now,"

"Perhaps you should assist Noct in his search since it seems like he won't be making much progress in his current blind state." Ignis suggested, and the blonde nodded with a snicker, searching halfheartedly.

Noctis snapped his head to his friend. "Ignis, for the last time, you're blind. You're not in the position to be making fun of my eyesight. On top of that, you still wear glasses!" 

"Details, details. Whereas you are now 'four-eyes' as you so liked to call me for nearly twenty years, I am merely two-eyes now. Which the last time I checked, is the normal amount of eyes."

A howl of laughter came from Gladio where he stood in the corner. Prompto may or may not have snuck a shot of Noctis's face for memory's sake.

Noctis just wanted to go back to bed and forget about everything. How he wished to return to his blissful and carefree sleep and dream of sylleblossom fields.

Yet fate was cruel to him for the second time in his life, and he had to scramble to find one of his pairs of glasses before he had to attend a big meeting that's been planned for over a month.

He cannot screw this up.

\-------

He totally screwed up. 

His hands cradled his head in distress as the clock in his office began to tick down to the time of the meeting. Prompto clapped a hand onto his hunched back.

"Come on, Noct. I think you're worrying over nothing, " He said, trying to comfort him in the best way he could. "Even if you need a little more time to read than usual, I doubt anyone will notice. You've even got Iggy with you!" 

Noctis groaned, his hands sliding from his head to cover his face. "It's still so embarrassing. I'm pathetic. To think I'd be defeated by cataracts..." He heaved a deep sigh and stood.

"No sense in being late on top of slow. Looks like I'm gonna need all the time I can get," 

Despite what he said, Noctis walked at a slow pace to gather his senses and calm his nerves. Everyone who were to attend the meeting are good people—especially Mrs. Gainsborough and Mr. Barusu—but there was no doubt that by tomorrow, word will spread about their King being so blind he can barely read without his glasses.

"Noct," Ignis turned at the sound of their footsteps and pulled out two folders. "Here's all the paperwork you need for this meeting. There are labels by regions and the representatives present. Everyone is inside already." 

"Thank, Iggy, I really appreciate it." Noctis stared at the folders in unease, barely making out the letters on tabs that protruded from the side. Gladio's arm that swung over his shoulders broke him from his worries.

"Take it easy, Highness. Get any more stressed and your vision'll get worse." 

Noctis shrugged off his arm, grumbling. "Yeah, yeah, I'm aware." He sighed for the umpteenth time that day and straightened himself. 

When the doors opened, everyone inside stood, placing a fist to their hearts and bowing to the King and his royal retinue. He beckoned them to raise their heads and greeted them with a warm smile. With his head held high and a posture that exuded regal authority, he made his way deeper into the room with Ignis in tow, and took his seat at the head.

His seat faced the doorway, catching Prompto's wink and encouraging smile and Gladio's nod as they took their positions. A King never shows his back to a door. Even if his two best friends were the guards.

Contrary to how he appeared, Noctis was all but losing his shit right now. This is bad. This is very bad. I can't make anyone's faces out from here. Can I identify everyone from their voices alone? Holy Tonberry.

He caught Gladio's smirking face from the corner of his eye and immediately corrected his expression. 

He could make it out of a meeting without royally screwing up if it's the last thing he'll do.

This brings us back to current time, as Noctis scowled internally. Fighting both his vision to focus even the tiniest bit, and the urge to pummel his friends for making the situation harder.

"Moving onto Mr. Barusu's concern regarding Cavaugh..." Noctis began. Barusu raised a hand, and Noctis looked to him, trying not to let his inability to see the man's facial expressions show.

"Pardon me, Your Majesty, but my concern is regarding Cleigne, not Cavaugh." Noctis looked back down at the documents, straining himself to control the speed of which his head whipped down. Sure enough, Noctis could make out the name Cleigne.

He cleared his throat, "My apologies, I misread the passage." To Noctis's relief, Barusu waved off the mix-up with a smile and adjusted the high collar of his black and orange suit.

Prompto's cheeks puffed out slightly in contained laughter and although Gladio had trained all his life to remain stoic and professional at all times during his duties as Shield, Noctis could still spot amusment dancing in his eyes through his own blurry vision.

Noctis let his eyes flash red at them briefly and swore that he'll punish them later.

Giving Prompto guard duty for a week with no action is practically torture for the blonde who always needed to be moving. As for Gladio, he'll have to kiss his precious cup noodles goodbye for the next month, because he won't be finding them anywhere until then.

There's no sense in being King if Noctis didn't abuse his title every now and then.

\-------

"Oh my Shiva, I thought I was going to die." Noctis collapsed onto the couch in his office while whining. 

Ignis reached down, missing and hitting the sofa arm at first before trying again. The second try let him place his hand atop Noctis's head and pat it a few times. "Job well done, Noct. Everything was resolved smoothly." Noctis groaned in exhaustion as a response.

"Yeah, great job! I'll never get used to seeing you act all Kingly but you were super cool despite being blind and all! You only slipped up a few times too!" Prompto swung his arms back and forth before having to swing his whole body out of the way when Noctis lunged at him.

"Don't think you two will get off easy! You bastards were laughing at me the entire time!" 

Prompto scratched his cheek and averted his eyes. Gladio, however, chose a different approach. "You should've seen how cute you were looking all lost and distressed. You would've laughed too if you saw it,"

An evil grin took over Noctis's features as his eyes glowed with his magic, the blue skeleton of his sword half forming in his hands. Ignis sighed and side-stepped out of the way and to a corner.

Prompto's eyes bounced back and forth between the two nervously and widened when he saw the familiar shape of Gladio's great sword forming. "Woah, hang on, don't fight in here! There's not enough space and did I ever mention I'm claustrophobic!?" 

They ignored his pleas and got into a battle stance. Gladio looked back in confusion when his weapon never fully formed and began disappearing from his grasp. 

Noctis huffed in triumph, his ring glowing. "Don't get too comfortable, Gladio, your magic comes from me. Put that muscle head of yours to use for once!" Noctis warped forward as Gladio readied his fists, the two men grinning in excitement.

A series of barks made Noctis fall out of the air and land in a squat. "Got something for me, boy?" Prompto was only mildly worried about how fast the mood changed.

Umbra stopped in front of Noctis, licking his hand in greeting. Noctis popped open the box on his harness.

"What is it, Noct?" Ignis asked. A few moments passed and Noctis opened his mouth to answer, only to clamp it shut. 

"Noct?" Prompto called this time.

They received no answer. The three exchanged a look of concern, fearing the worst if it made Noctis speechless. Had New Nifelheim rebelled, following in its predecessor's footsteps? Had the blight returned? The possibilities were endless.

"Umbra," Finally, Noctis broke the heavily silence. The canine sat, his tail sweeping over the floor as it wagged while he awaited his master's next words. "Did you have this... all week?" A single bark meant a confirmation from Umbra.

The three moved to where Noctis kneeled, peering over his shoulder. "What is it?" Ignis asked, hating being in the dark.

Gladio snickered, the light chuckles escalating into full cackles and Prompto followed soon after, barely speaking between laughter and heavy breaths. "The- his- Umbra has- Umbra has Noctis's g-glasses!"

"I... can't even be mad at you," Noctis was fully and thoroughly defeated, letting himself fall back on his behind. 

Umbra tilted his head innocently, seeming almost confused by the sudden commotion. And yet, there was a small sparkle of mischief in his eyes.


End file.
